Charts are analog | Charts Types - Overview | Advanced Charts | Hints and Tips
Basic Rule: Charts show overviews - for details use tables!
Quantitative data can be represented as charts by using the following analog properties
People differ in their ability to estimate physical properties: They are best at estimating positions and distances, but not so good at estimating slopes, angles, and areas (in this order).
Charts are images: Good charts enable users to easily and quickly find relevant/critical data or recognize important relations between data.
For a discussion on when to use charts and when tables see Charts vs. Tables.
Figure 1: Area chart
Figure 2: Multiple column chart
Figure 3: Segmented column chart (relative values)
Discrete frequency distribution based on curve chart (polygon) or column/staircase chart (histogram).
Figure 4: Histogram as frequency distribution
Figure 5: Line chart
Figure 6: Pie chart
Based on the position of data points; shows the distribution of data points along one or two dimensions.
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Figure 7: One-dimensional scatterplot (left), two-dimensional scatterplot (right)
Based on geographical maps; typically used for geographical data; can also be used for parts of devices, human or animal bodies.
Above we listed basic chart types. Charts can be made even more informative if used in new ways or combinations. For example, you can combine a map with pie charts or bar charts to present the geographical distribution of certain variables.
Figure 8: A geo chart showing the distribution of two variables in Northern Germany
Note: Often these charts have to be "handcrafted" and can be used as static images only.
